GWM confirms Wey sub-brand for Australia

GWM has confirmed that its luxury sub-brand, Wey, will enter the Australian market next year with a line-up centred on plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrains.

The Chinese brand has deliberated for several years over whether to introduce Wey to Australia, alongside existing sub-brands Haval, Tank, Cannon and Ora, but GWM executives now say conditions are right.

With a range of premium PHEV models, GWM Australia believes Wey will be well-placed to respond to growing demand for plug-ins as a halfway house between combustion engines and full EVs.

“(Wey) will be plug-in,” GWM Australia head of marketing Steve Maciver told GoAuto.

“We are pretty confident, with the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) scenario we are facing, that we are going to see an increased share of PHEVs.

“It is going to have to happen, and we are betting pretty big on it.”

Pronounced “way”, the premium marque takes its name from Great Wall Motors’ chairman, Wei Jianjun – officially Anglicised as Jack Wey.

Australian media including GoAuto was invited to sample the Wey Gaoshan luxury people-mover at the Lang Lang Proving Ground in Victoria this week. The evaluation vehicles carry GWM Wey G9 badging, believed to preview the local naming philosophy for the model.

As for arrival timing of the Wey brand, Mr Maciver said, “there is a good chance you are going to see it next year”.

Initial plans for Wey’s SUV models to be absorbed by GWM’s mainstream Haval SUV sub-brand have been shelved in favour of establishing Wey as yet another vertical within the brand’s co-mingled showrooms.

Wey is expected to be positioned above Haval and alongside Tank within the portfolio.

At least two Wey models are under active assessment for Australia.

Alongside the G9 luxury van, GWM is also evaluating the Wey Blue Mountain SUV for right-hand drive markets, with a third model, possibly the Mocha mid-sized SUV, being studied for launch.

Both the G9 and Blue Mountain are built exclusively in China with PHEV engines, though both are based on GWM’s outgoing plug-in powertrain architecture. However, one or both may be updated with GWM’s new-gen Hi4-Z high-performance PHEV system in the near future.

The G9 minivan combines a 1.5-litre turbo petrol four-cylinder engine with two electric motors to deliver system output of 358kW/762Nm while promising an EV-only driving range of about 140km.

Meanwhile, the Blue Mountain employs a similar 1.5T/dual-motor PHEV configuration, but the SUV raises the output cap to 380kW/933Nm while matching the G9’s 140km EV range and offering an overall driving range exceeding 1000km.

Mr Maciver hinted that Hi4-Z, GWM’s newer-gen PHEV system that offers more power, up to 200km electric range, and an especially responsive electrified AWD system, could be the right fit for the Blue Mountain.

“It will give you increased performance and increased (electric) range on-road, so it could be a good option for us,” he said.

Should the Hi4-Z PHEV system be selected for the Blue Mountain, the hybrid SUV’s outputs could climb as high as 635kW/1195Nm.

Despite Wey’s planned upmarket positioning, GWM insists Australian pricing will remain relatively accessible compared to rivals.

The company is mindful of the reaction to premium MPVs such as the Zeekr 009 and Lexus LM, both of which start well north of $100,000 plus on-road costs.

“Comparing what other brands may be doing in the (minivan) space at six figures, we don’t believe that is where the vehicle should be priced for us,” added Mr Maciver.

“We don’t know exactly what that (price) looks like, but we are pretty confident we are not going to be at six figures.”